Below are my beliefs on building community in a classroom and how I plan to go about it.
Building a strong sense of community is important in a classroom. It not only let’s the students get to know each other, but to understand them and find out those similarities and differences. It is also a great way for the teacher to start to learn about the classroom culture. On the first day of school I would have everyone introduce themselves with their name and one interesting fact about them. After that is done and we do a few things with the rules and procedures I would do connections. All of the students would stand at their chair and I would start by saying something about myself and if someone in the room likes the same thing or can relate it to something about their selves they would loop arms with me and state their thing. They would then continue talking about who they are until someone can connect. Once all the students have connected, the last student has to talk until they can find a connection to me. In the end we make a complete circle, showing that we are linked together in ways we never knew about before. In fourth grade they can play more advanced games so further into the first week I would have the students get into teams of 4 and we would play minute to win it. All of the different activities will get the students up and moving, but also make them get over their fear of making a fool of themselves in front of their peers. Once you do an activity that makes you look a little foolish in front of everyone, some don’t fear reading aloud, answering questions in class or giving a presentation if needed. They know that even if they mess up, they have done something more embarrassing already and don’t feel as bad about it. It gives them the courage to stand up in front of everyone else.
Throughout the year I will also do greetings in the morning that will give everyone a chance to say good morning to each other and share something. At the beginning of the year I would give them topics to share things about, but as the year progresses I would have the students pick the topic. It will help to see what the students are interested in talking about and also let us see each other opinions in a way that is void of judgment and comment making.
Before any of the above activities happen I will start building a community before the students even arrive. I will have their names on their desks as well as their names on folders and planners, placed in their designated spots. The names of the students will already be on more than one thing in the room, showing that something in the classroom already belonged to them. The walls be mostly blank, only a few things like a number line and the alphabet will be posted. The rest is to be filled in with student work and others things made by the students.
Staring on the first day of school I will ask the students opinion on what they would like the classroom rules to be. I will have a basic outline of what I want them to be, but I will let the students come up with the rules themselves. I think collaborating with them will make them feel like they had a part in the process instead of just being told what to do. Also instead of me writing the rules and hanging them up, I will have the students write them instead. It will show that they really did work on them. They will not only make the signs for the rules, they will make the signs for the different areas around the room, the labels for the different items placed around the room and I will have them write their names on a card to place on the outside of the classroom door. Throughout the year their work will be added to the walls and by the end of the year, there will be more student work on the walls than posters made or bought by me. At the end of the year they will be able to look around the room and see everything they worked on throughout the year. They will see how much the contributed and see how working together made the room what it is.
Community building activities don’t have to be complex, they can be the simplest of things and as I go through my career as a teacher I am sure I will pick up more activities to do with not only fourth grade, but other grades as well.
Throughout the year I will also do greetings in the morning that will give everyone a chance to say good morning to each other and share something. At the beginning of the year I would give them topics to share things about, but as the year progresses I would have the students pick the topic. It will help to see what the students are interested in talking about and also let us see each other opinions in a way that is void of judgment and comment making.
Before any of the above activities happen I will start building a community before the students even arrive. I will have their names on their desks as well as their names on folders and planners, placed in their designated spots. The names of the students will already be on more than one thing in the room, showing that something in the classroom already belonged to them. The walls be mostly blank, only a few things like a number line and the alphabet will be posted. The rest is to be filled in with student work and others things made by the students.
Staring on the first day of school I will ask the students opinion on what they would like the classroom rules to be. I will have a basic outline of what I want them to be, but I will let the students come up with the rules themselves. I think collaborating with them will make them feel like they had a part in the process instead of just being told what to do. Also instead of me writing the rules and hanging them up, I will have the students write them instead. It will show that they really did work on them. They will not only make the signs for the rules, they will make the signs for the different areas around the room, the labels for the different items placed around the room and I will have them write their names on a card to place on the outside of the classroom door. Throughout the year their work will be added to the walls and by the end of the year, there will be more student work on the walls than posters made or bought by me. At the end of the year they will be able to look around the room and see everything they worked on throughout the year. They will see how much the contributed and see how working together made the room what it is.
Community building activities don’t have to be complex, they can be the simplest of things and as I go through my career as a teacher I am sure I will pick up more activities to do with not only fourth grade, but other grades as well.